Indians 4, Athletics 3: Indians win on controversial call

Mark Duncan/Associated Press
Athletics manager Bob Melvin, left, argues with umpire Angel Hernandez after a review failed to turn a double by Adam Rosales against the Indians into a home run in the ninth inning Wednesday at Progressive Field. The Indians won, 4-3.

Wednesday night, the Tribe beat the Oakland A's 4-3 in a wild finish in which the umpires ruled that what would have been a game-tying home run with two outs in the ninth inning was actually a double.

An incredulous Oakland manager Bob Melvin was so incensed he was thrown out of the game.

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"The only four guys who thought it wasn't a home run was the umpires," Melvin said.

With two outs and nobody on in the top of the ninth, Tribe closer Chris Perez was one out away from closing out a 4-3 Tribe victory.

However, Adam Rosales hit a long fly ball to left field. The ball appeared to hit off the railing above the left-field wall, which would make it a home run. However, the umpires ruled the ball hit off the top of the wall and that it was a double.

Melvin came onto the field to argue, and the umpires agreed to leave the field for a video review of the play.

"Off the bat I thought it was a home run," Perez said. "It looked like a home run and it sounded like a home run."

Then the umpires returned to the field, and confirmed their initial ruling, that it was a double.

"It wasn't evident on the TV we had that it was a home run," umpire Angel Hernandez said to a pool reporter. "I don't know what kind of replay you had, but you can't reverse a call unless there is 100 percent evidence, and there wasn't 100 percent evidence."

Melvin sprinted from the dugout again to argue and was immediately ejected from the game.

"What did umps say? -- Inconclusive," Melvin said. "They were probably the only four people in the ballpark that thought it was inconclusive. Everyone else said it was a home run, including their announcers. I went in and looked at it later (after being ejected), it clearly hit the railing. I'm at a complete loss.

"A homer is a homer, even if it's over by an inch. If it hit the pad, it would have come down softly. Clearly there was a ricochet."

Said Rosales: "Our whole team thought it was the wrong call. ... The replays showed it hit the railing. ... With six eyes on it (the three umpires who did the review) you would have thought they'd make the right call."

"I honestly thought it hit the yellow line, but then I came in here and saw differently," Perez said. "We'll take it."

Tribe starter Justin Masterson was asked if he saw the replay.

"You mean of the double?" he said. "It's not for me to agree or disagree with the umpires. They said it was a double, so that's what it is."

Said Tribe manager Terry Francona: "I was hopeful it hit the padding. It was a big sigh of relief when it stayed in because as long as it's not over, we were still ahead."

After the replay, Rosales was put at second base. Perez then hit the next batter and walked the one after that to load the bases.

But Perez finally ended the game by getting Seth Smith on a dribbler back to the mound.

Prior to the home run that wasn't, the Indians hit two home runs that were -- and those were the difference in the game.

The Tribe came into the game tied with Toronto for the American League lead in home runs with 44. In the sixth inning, Tribe hitters flexed their muscles and took a 4-3 lead.

With one out in the sixth inning and the Indians down, 3-2, Nick Swisher smashed his fourth home run, over the wall in center field to tie the game.

One batter later, Carlos Santana belted a 3-1 pitch from A's starter A.J. Griffin over the wall in center for his seventh home run and the Indians had a 4-3 lead.

Masterson gave up four hits, threw a wild pitch and hit a batter as Oakland sent eight batters to the plate and came away with a 3-0 lead in the fourth inning.

The Indians scored two runs on an ugly fifth-inning rally to cut it to 3-2.

Then in the sixth, Swisher and Santana played long ball, and the Tribe had a 4-3 lead.

Masterson (5-2) was removed from the game after seven innings and 100 pitches. He gave up three runs on four hits with seven strikeouts and two walks.

Relievers Joe Smith and Perez pitched the last two innings, allowing no runs -- and no home runs.